Postage meter actuators of the type shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,121,473, issued Oct. 24, 1978 to K. E. Schubert and P. Pollak, Jr. and assigned to the assignee of the present invention, are adapted to be removably mounted in an operating relationship with respect to postage meters; for example, on a postage meter such as a Model 5300 postage meter commercially available from the assignee of the present invention or on a suitable support associated with a Model 5300 postage meter. Such postage meters generally include postage value printing means and a plurality of postage value selecting levers. The postage meter levers are operationally coupled by well-known means to the printing means and individually manually positionable in a plurality of positions for selecting the desired postage value to be printed. The actuator generally includes means for automatically positioning the postage meter levers in response to electrical signals generated for example by means of a data processer associated with an electronic scale in a mailing system of the type discussed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,246,525, issued Jan. 20, 1981 to V. G. Coppola, and assigned to the assignee of the present invention. In such mailing systems the scale includes a pan for weighing mailpieces, and the data processer generates signals which are a function of mailpiece weight, destination and transportation class. Before the actuator is mounted in the operating relationship with respect to the postage meter the postage meter levers must be located in a reference position, such as the zero value position, for synchronizing the actuator, and thus the postage meter, with the remainder of the mailing system, and thus with the zero weight level of the scale pan; for printing postage values which are a function of the weight of successive mailpieces placed on the scale pan. To ensure proper location of the postage meter levers for synchronization purposes, the actuator includes a base wall in the form of a plate having a plurality of elongated apertures formed in the same, through which the postage meter levers must be inserted when the actuator is being mounted on the postage meter. And the apertures are dimensioned to permit insertion of the levers through the base plate only when all of the levers are located in their respective reference positions. With this arrangement, the postage meter levers must be returned by the actuator to their respective reference positions before the actuator can be removed out of the operating relationship with respect to the postage meter, for example to take the postage meter to the local Post Office for resetting purposes. However, it has been found that users often attempt removal of the actuato rs without first returning the postage meter levers to their reference positions; as a result of which the postage meter levers have been inadvertently moved out of synchronism with the associated scale. Accordingly:
An object of the present invention is to provide an actuator for a postage meter having postage value selecting levers, wherein the actuator includes means for preventing inadvertant movement of the postage meter levers, in particular when an attempt is made to move the actuator out of operating relationship with respect to the postage meter prior to returning the levers to a reference or other home position;
Another object is to provide postage meter lever positioning means with means for securing the postage meter levers against inadvertent movement, in particular when the levers are not in their home position and an attempt is made to move the lever positioning means out of operating relationship with respect to the postage meter; and
Another object is to provide an actuator, removably mountable in an operating relationship with respect to a postage meter, having a postage value selecting lever positionable in a zero postage value position, with means for blocking lever movement by the actuator when removal of the actuator is attempted prior to returning the lever to its zero postage value position.